Thursday, September 12, 2013

Dealing with the cross(es)

This Saturday is the Feast of Exaltation of the Holy Cross. I guess this is a good opportunity to talk about the cross.

Last Sunday I received news that Paul's cousin, Ryan (the one I've been meeting to teach English) broke his leg. Doctor found a tumor around his thigh bone. We don't know yet if it's a benign or malignant. Please pray for him and his parents. The good news is, I think he is a brave little boy. He's good in entertaining himself too. (He was playing "parking game" when I saw him two days ago and he happily showed me how he could complete level 18!!)

How to understand this 'cross'? How to our explain to a 5-year-old boy that his suffering is not meaningless?
Sometimes we take it for granted that our priests and our Catholic friends told us to "embrace the cross". We may complain, "What are you talking about? Embrace the cross? Offer up the suffering? It's difficult!"

But have we imagined the situation of the people who do not understand about the cross? How tempting it is to think that the suffering is meaningless.

Now I really see the reason to be joyful on the fact that we need to carry the cross and unite our suffering with Christ's suffering. It's hard, it's challenging, but it's a beautiful aspect of our Christian faith.



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